The Democratic advocate., 1887-07-16

They are handsome, showy-looking girls,
but they must be bored to death at Leal-
holm"
"Oh, no; they ride great deal-they
60 to Scarboro whenever they like. They
have number of friends there, and their
mother makes them all welcome at Leal-
holm. They see great many people"
"And is all going on right there?" she
asked anxiously.
II imagine so" l replied cautiously, for
l thought knew what she meant.
"You don't hear any complaints ?"
"No, | think they find the house very
comfortable" l said, for l did not know
whether she was referring to the ghost or
not, and thought she had better declare
herself.
"But when ] was there" said Lady
Olive, 81 had great deal of annoyance
with the servants-they declared they saw
| ghosts"
"And you?" 1 asked, determined to
drive her into a corner, for she had no right
to talk in this uncertain way about her SER
wants fancying that they saw ghosts if she
was so foolish as to fancy the same thing,
did you never imagine that you saw them.
too ?"
You must promise never to mention
what am going to say, she answered;
'but, to tell you the honest truth, l have
had little fancies of the same kind-in fact,
have more than once imagined | saw a
fgure-a figure of little old lady dressed
in gray, wandering about the house"
"Was that what the servants said they
saw ?" 1 asked, though knew it was, and
had heard so repeatedly.
eyes, whenever any one came to say that
she had seen something, it was always this
same little old lady in gray. She was per-
fectly harmless-no one ever said she was
pot-but nevertheless the maids were terri
fed"
"And you?" 1 again demanded. "Did
she not terrify you p
swell, perhaps she did little, There
is something rather eerie about meeting a
strange, silent, unknown woman gliding
about your house by night"
aWhy didn't you speak to her, and ask
her what she wanted-that's what you be-
lievers say is the right thing to do?'
~ speak to her | should not have
dared, was glad to leave the house,
Mind you, don't believe really saw any
thing. | know it was only delusion, but
1t was disagreeably persistent one. You
won't repeat this ?"
sOf course not, but everyone knows it.
Do you think that what the servants saw
was delusion too ?"
ssThe servants saw nothing They heard
rumors of what had seen, and thought it
their duty to see the same, that is all; that 5
what servants do. Once more, must beg
you not to speak of this. / want TO let
Lealholm for some years-no one will take
it if they hear it is haunted"
81 shall not tell. Besides, if I did, you
could refer people to Mrs. Arbuthnot; she
has seen no ghost, and none of her servants
have"
taAh!" she exclaimed, in a tone of great
relief, show delighted | am to hear that,
! ought to call on her. have not dared
to gog was so afraid of hearing complaints
of the ghost, and reproaches for letting a
haunted house. Are you quite sure that
none of them have seen anything 7"
sQuIte, Mrs, Arbuthnot is enchanted
with the place. She told me the ntheFday
that she had not felt 80 happy since she was
child-that sense of perfect well-being
and rest had taken possession Of her.
'Poor thing How glad am
sShe went there in some trepidatiOn, for
every one told her that her daughters would
be unhappy-that they would be too far
from Scarboro to enjoy it, and too near 10
feel that enjoying it was quite out of the
question; but that is not the Gaze at all
they are as happy as she is
''I will call tomorrow wish [ had
gone before. 1t is so odd that the servants
have given her no trouble" she added, as
if not quite satisfied.
| could not help wondering what had
become of her belief in the ghost being a
delHsioR of her oTn.
"The servants" | repeated ethey are
high and mighty London ones | don't
suppose they condescend to talk to the
natives"
"Well, l shall go tomorrow" she re-
peated. II shall certainly go tomorrow. J"
81 am going to-day. | am to stay two
nights there"
1.-Two nights" she exclaimed, In amaze
ment, and then | once more realized how
much fear she had felt, and how little be-
lief she had in her own theory of delusions.
"You might go to Lealholm with me, l
said, taking no notice of this. Suppose
that instead of letting your carriage come
here, you telegraph to your coachman to be
there at 5. We will set off so as to arrive
about 4.30-you won't want more than
half an hour to make your call"
san excellent plan, But when you aye
there, dear Mrs. Trevor, don't let anything
tempt you to reveal what I have said"
81 reveal 1t? Never. 1t would be a
perfect sin to disturb her happiness. can
keep secret" And smiled as | thought
of the secret I was now keeping from Lady
Olive, What would she have thought of
poor, foolish Mrs. Arbuthnot's ridiculous
fancies about Lealholm? What ridiculous
fancies they were How could any grown
woman be so absurd as to think she could
recognize house she had seen only in the
yelled light of dreams? Dreams are all
yagaeaess and eopfqsioni it would be per-
feptly easy to persuade oneself that almost
any house was the very counterpart of a
shadowy house dreamed of months before.
| was thinking Of this when Lady Olive
said, aWhat kind of person is Mrs. Ar
buthnot? Is she matter of fact ?"
"By no means. IF you are still thinking
of your ghost, she is just the person to see
it, if it were there to be seen. She is mos.
imaginative-you have no idea what odd
fancies she has"
"What kind of fancies ?"
sYou will see her this afternoon; perhaps
she will tell you herself" I answered, eva
siEeIy.
We carried out our project, and went to
Lealholm together.
@She has got it for ridiculously low
rent" exclaimed the high.born lady, the
moment she saw the house. II should like
to know where she could find such house
as that for sixteen guineas week anywhere
else ?"
/ I'll .h.tl,ot ,x,rls ,r,aro Ma xy,Dfy tannic